Osun poll: Campaign council faults EFCC over account freez
The Imole Campaign Council has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of abusing its powers by allegedly freezing the Osun State Government’s accounts less than two weeks before the August 15 governorship election.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Chairman of the council’s Media and Publicity Committee, Bamidele Salam, described the action as a politically motivated move capable of disrupting governance and influencing the electoral process in the state.
The council said it was “ludicrous” that an agency established to combat financial crimes would allegedly take steps capable of hindering the operations of a democratically elected government at a critical period.
According to the statement, the alleged freezing of the state’s accounts would affect the government’s ability to meet its financial obligations, including the payment of salaries and allowances to workers, pensions, execution of infrastructure projects, funding of security operations and the delivery of other essential public services.
It argued that the action amounted to an abuse of statutory powers and could subject residents of the state to unnecessary hardship by slowing government activities.
The council further alleged that the timing of the action suggested an attempt to exert economic pressure on the people of Osun ahead of the governorship election.
It maintained that while it was not opposed to accountability in public office or the fight against corruption, anti-graft agencies should carry out their responsibilities in line with the law and without creating the impression of political interference.
The statement added that public institutions should not be deployed in ways that could undermine democratic processes or deny citizens access to the benefits of governance.
The campaign council therefore called on the EFCC to immediately reverse the alleged freezing of the state’s accounts, insisting that governance should not be disrupted because of what it described as politically motivated actions.
It also urged the commission to allow the Osun State Government to continue discharging its constitutional responsibilities while the people freely exercise their democratic rights during the forthcoming governorship election.
The EFCC had yet to issue an official response to the allegations as of the time this report was filed.
